PETER Whittingham is relishing the chance to take on Steven Gerrard in the Wembley Stadium cauldron tomorrow.

PETER Whittingham is relishing the chance to take on Steven Gerrard in the Wembley Stadium cauldron tomorrow.

The two men have only gone head-to-head once before and honours were even as Whitts helped Aston Villa earn a goalless Premier League home draw in 2003.

“Steven Gerrard is a great player and somebody I try to emulate,” said Whittingham. “I always enjoy playing against really good players and there is loads of quality in the Liverpool team. Hopefully I can step up to the plate and prove it.

“Liverpool have so many fantastic players it will be a hard game, but it’s one we still think we can be successful in.”

Whittingham could be wearing the captain’s armband for the Carling Cup final even though Mark Hudson is fit and ready to return.

Manager Mackay must decide whether to stick with the Anthony Gerrard/Ben Turner partnership in the back four or recall Hudson to the starting line-up.

“It would be weird to captain Cardiff City against Liverpool at Wembley, but I will happily take that if it happens,” he said “That depends on the fitness of Huds.”

Bluebirds playmaker Whitts likes to make it known he is happy and settled at Cardiff, while he underlined that by signing a new contract this season.

But he admits to thinking and hard about leaving South Wales for good last summer after a number of team-mates including Craig Bellamy moved on.

It took hard talking by new manager Malky Mackay to persuade Whittingham his future would be best served by remaining at City.

“The hardest decision was last summer seeing Chops (Chopra), Jay (Bothroyd), Burky (Chris Burke) and Bellers leave,” said Whittingham. “It was hard for me and I needed to speak to Malky Mackay about it.

“He made me promises that we would go again and that’s what we have done.

“There were a couple of offers kicking about for me, but once I had spoken to the manager I was happy and felt it was the right thing to give it a go.

“The gaffer has been really good and speaks to me after most games, telling me what I need to improve on and what I am doing well. For a manager to take the time to speak to you like that is great for me and I owe him.

“My intention is to pay him back by doing all I can to help Cardiff City earn success this season.

“I’ve been here six seasons and I badly want to see the whole project through to the end, help Cardiff City earn promotion to the Premier League and stay there. Now that would be the ideal scenario.”

Mackay’s job in convincing Whittingham the club are as ambitious as befpre worked to such an extent that the former Aston Villa player signed a new deal.

Whitts, 27, has seen the football club change and progress during the six years since he left the English midlands for South Wales and he said: “It is almost a completely different club these days. When I first came it wasn’t really up to scratch.

“Dave Jones outlined his plans, what he wanted to happen and I got involved with it. Malky is pushing forward again.

“The work everybody has put in and the progress made from the start of this season has been amazing. He came in with eight or nine senior players left in the squad.

“What has been achieved since then is frightening and tomorrow, against Liverpool at Wembley Stadium, is the next step.

“But, no matter what happens in this game, we have a lot to aim for this season. We are still right in the Championship mix and we need to come out of the Wembley experience focused on League success.”

The memory of Whittingham’s last Wembley appearance, against Blackpool in the play-off final two years ago, will drive him on against Liverpool.

“That was a horrible experience, one of the worst,” said Whittingham. “We took the lead a couple of times, but in the end the only word which fits is horrible.

“We lost our final match of the season and didn’t have another for two months. I spent the summer thinking about that defeat.

“Then, just to rub it in, we saw Blackpool playing in the Premier League. How we’d love to put that firmly in the past both for us and the fans. The only way to achieve that this season is do well against Liverpool and earn promotion.

“Most people expect Liverpool to win, but there is just as much pressure on us because we want to do well for City fans, our football club and the whole of Cardiff.

“We’ll have to ride our luck and Liverpool will have chances, while when we get chances we have to take them.

“We certainly won’t be in awe of the occasion, while we would like love the chance to make it the third stage of a Welsh triple crown, by following the Wales rugby team and boxer Nathan Cleverly to success.

“That is something the players have fed off in the build-up. It would be great for the whole of Wales.

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